Former NBA player Jeremy Lin (林書豪), a Taiwanese-American, has become a Republic of China (ROC) citizen and received an ROC passport, raising hopes among basketball fans that the 32-year-old might make the national basketball team.
Taipei City Councilor Chung Hsiao-ping (鍾小平), an independent, yesterday confirmed that he had accompanied Lin’s father and Lin’s agent when the father went to apply for Lin’s ROC passport.
“He [Lin] is very willing to represent Taiwan in international games,” Chung said.
Photo courtesy of Taipei City Councilor Chung Hsiao-ping
Chung said that he, Lin’s father and Lin’s agent visited the Ministry of the Interior (MOI) in Taipei to express their gratitude to Minister of the Interior Hsu Kuo-yung (徐國勇) after receiving the passport.
The California-born Lin, a Harvard University graduate who became the first Taiwanese-American to play in the NBA when he was signed by the Golden State Warriors in 2010, made headline news in 2011 and 2012 when as a point guard he helped led the New York Knicks to a series of wins, starting a phenomenon that became known as “Linsanity.”
He is eligible for ROC citizenship because both of his parents were born and raised in Taiwan.
Lin, who has had a journeyman’s career in the NBA, received an NBA championship ring last year as a member of the Toronto Raptors.
In August last, Lin signed with the Beijing Ducks of the Chinese Basketball Association and was instrumental in leading the team to the semi-finals in the 2019-2020 CBA league playoffs that began last month.
Lin had an average of 22.4 points per round, 5.6 rebounds and 5.6 assists during his time with the Ducks.
Lin told Chinese reporters that he would “take a break” before deciding whether he to renew his contract with the Ducks.
The Chinese-language United Daily News yesterday reported that the interior ministry responded to the news of Lin getting an ROC passport by saying that it was the Ministry of Foreign Affairs that issues passports.
If Lin, who does not have a household residency in Taiwan, had applied for an ROC passport, he would have had to follow procedures, although there is a special provision that would allow him to keep his ROC citizenship even if he entered and left the nation multiple times in a year, the interior ministry said.
If Lin wanted to apply for residency, it would observe the same regulations that it follows to help citizens without household registries in this nation, although he would likely be approved according to rules covering the granting of residency to “high-level professionals,” the interior ministry said.
Additional reporting by CNA
The Ministry of Education (MOE) is to launch a new program to encourage international students to stay in Taiwan and explore job opportunities here after graduation, Deputy Minister of Education Yeh Ping-cheng (葉丙成) said on Friday. The government would provide full scholarships for international students to further their studies for two years in Taiwan, so those who want to pursue a master’s degree can consider applying for the program, he said. The fields included are science, technology, engineering, mathematics, semiconductors and finance, Yeh added. The program, called “Intense 2+2,” would also assist international students who completed the two years of further studies in
Former president Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) departed for Europe on Friday night, with planned stops in Lithuania and Denmark. Tsai arrived at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport on Friday night, but did not speak to reporters before departing. Tsai wrote on social media later that the purpose of the trip was to reaffirm the commitment of Taiwanese to working with democratic allies to promote regional security and stability, upholding freedom and democracy, and defending their homeland. She also expressed hope that through joint efforts, Taiwan and Europe would continue to be partners building up economic resilience on the global stage. The former president was to first
Former president Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) on Monday called for greater cooperation between Taiwan, Lithuania and the EU to counter threats to information security, including attacks on undersea cables and other critical infrastructure. In a speech at Vilnius University in the Lithuanian capital, Tsai highlighted recent incidents in which vital undersea cables — essential for cross-border data transmission — were severed in the Taiwan Strait and the Baltic Sea over the past year. Taiwanese authorities suspect Chinese sabotage in the incidents near Taiwan’s waters, while EU leaders have said Russia is the likely culprit behind similar breaches in the Baltic. “Taiwan and our European
The Taipei District Court sentenced babysitters Liu Tsai-hsuan (劉彩萱) and Liu Jou-lin (劉若琳) to life and 18 years in prison respectively today for causing the death of a one-year-old boy in December 2023. The Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office said that Liu Tsai-hsuan was entrusted with the care of a one-year-old boy, nicknamed Kai Kai (剴剴), in August 2023 by the Child Welfare League Foundation. From Sept. 1 to Dec. 23 that year, she and her sister Liu Jou-lin allegedly committed acts of abuse against the boy, who was rushed to the hospital with severe injuries on Dec. 24, 2023, but did not
RSS